ITKAN, a professional organization affiliated with the Illinois Technology Foundation, whose mission is to develop passionate IT professionals with disabilities, is partnering withMicrosoft’s Technology & Civic Engagement team in Chicago, as well as Directions – a nationwide leader in IT, business and enterprise training solutions and one of only 12 Microsoft Gol

There's no avoiding that some of my postings have had a negative slant to them, and a darker casting.  I won't apologize for it; when things are bad, the responsible, mature, beneficial members of the community keep their eyes, minds, and hearts open.  It doesn't matter if voices in the dark speak loudly or softly, but they should be present, meaningful, and contributing.  The contributions don't necessitate relentless or naive

According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report from August, 2014, 80.2% of persons with disabilities are not participating in the labor force. The non participation rate for persons without disabilities is only 31.8% according to the same report.  The latest-recorded unemployment rate for disabled job seekers (from August 2014)

Cynics say that the belief and reality that people all make and live in one community is an idealist's refuge of theory and abstraction.  I believe this point of view is untrue and damnable, and my reasoning is grounded in the progressing injustice being executed in Ferguson, Missouri.  Michael Brown has been laid to rest, and the facts and judgments surrounding his death are in dispute, but I be

             I know I’m addressing women and men with these words, not girls or boys or newborns unaware of how the world works and what civilization expects, so in detailing common topics like motivation and success, I’ll avoid tidy fortune cookie platitudes such as “Believe in yourself!”  You’re adults, professionals who work.  If you didn’t understand the value of belief and perseverance, you wouldn’t be given

I’ll begin with a reminder that this article is written specifically from the perspective of an individual with an obvious physical disability, who self-identifies by nature and choice as an individual with a disability.  Not everyone who has a disability is readily identifiable as a disabled person, for myriad different reasons.  For example, their disability may not be physical, visually recognizable, or they may choose to obscure or deny the conditions and precepts of their disability.  This is their choice, and they are free to make it.  However, an argument will be made in this writing

As a professional and a job seeker with a disability, I’m often confronted with a work environment that becomes a challenge for me to consistently successfully navigate because of unique difficulties imposed by my disability.  My disability is Cerebral Palsy, and the individual issues that I need to recognize and circumvent on a daily basis are physical in nature, centered on mobility.  This is the perspective through which I will summarize and investig